Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
WILDLIFE IN AO PANG-NGA NATIONAL PARK
The marine limestone environment here favours a long list of reptiles, including Bengal monitor lizards, flying
lizards, banded sea snakes, dogface water snakes, shore pit vipers and Malayan pit vipers. Keep an eye out for a
two-banded monitor
(Varanus salvator),
which looks like a crocodile when seen swimming in the mangrove
swamp and can measure up to 2.2m in length.
Amphibians in the Ao Phang-Nga region include marsh frogs, common bush frogs and crab-eating frogs. Avian
residents of note are helmeted hornbills (the largest of Thailand's 12 hornbill species, with a body length of up to
127cm), the edible-nest swiftlets
(Aerodramus fuciphagus),
white-bellied sea eagles, ospreys and Pacific reef
egrets.
In the mangrove forests and on some of the larger islands reside over 200 species of mammals, including
white-handed gibbons, serows, dusky langurs and crab-eating macaques.
Getting There & Around
If you have your own vehicle, drive about 6km south on Hwy 4 from the centre of Phang-
Nga, turn left onto Rte 4144 (the road to Tha Dan) and travel 2.6km to the park headquar-
ters. Without your own transport you'll need to take a
sŏrng·tăa·ou
to Tha Dan (30B).
From the park office, you can hire a boat (1500-2000B, maximum four passengers) for
a three-hour tour of the surrounding islands.
TOP OF CHAPTER
Ko Yao
With mountainous backbones, unspoilt shorelines, a large variety of birdlife and a popula-
tion of friendly Muslim fisherfolk,
Ko Yao Yai
and
Ko Yao Noi
are laid-back vantage points for
soaking up Ao Phang-Nga's beautiful scenery. The islands are part of the Ao Phang-Nga
National Park but are most easily accessed from Phuket.
Despite being the relative pipsqueak of the Ko Yao Islands, Ko Yao Noi is the main
population centre, with fishing, coconut farming and tourism sustaining its small, year-
round population. Bays on the east coast recede to mud flats at low tide but the beaches
are still splendid. Ko Yao Yai is far less developed than Ko Yao Noi; it offers an even
more remote and wild getaway.
Please remember to respect the beliefs of the local Muslim population and wear modest
clothing when away from the beaches.
